On Nov 25, 2014 2:48 PM, "Sarah Stierch" <sarah.stie...@gmail.com> wrote: > could there ever be any legal repercussion - like the "real" legal system, not an internet community - that could be taken to support a person who should not be "banned" from a website? like carol? If you're called lots of nasty names, if men aren't being banned, etc but women are, blahblahblah - that's sexist and discrimination IMHO.
There's a few options, sticks and a carrot. But I don't think any of them are appropriate here. I'm not even sure if solutions to the arbcom mess(es) should come from the foundation at all. Stick: find a law that would be violated by such a ban. maybe in order to have standing, the banned user would herself have to be party to the suit. (i.e. couldn't be filed by an arbitrary bystander) I doubt such a law exists. Women are a protected class under some laws but I don't see how they would apply here. WMF is AFAIK a relatively ordinary 501(c)(3). (legally speaking) It was not chartered by an act of a legislature nor is it a part of any government department or agency. Or find a part of the bylaws, articles of incorporation or a policy of the foundation that this ban would violate. I don't think this would work. (Although, taking this a step further, if editors were employees rather than volunteers then I guess there would be substantial remedies available) Stick version 2: convince the voting membership of the foundation to make some sort of change. WMF is not a membership organization so that doesn't work. Carrot: get a major funder of the foundation to reverse course or to ask the foundation to do something. or get the legislature or executive of a government sponsor to make funds conditional on X. (like the way US federal policies dictate state drinking ages though highway maintenance funding (or withholding thereof)) I don't think WMF gets any government funds now and could probably do well enough with just banners to survive without major donors. (at least given current trends; already most revenue is from small individual donations) > I have a lawyer on standby for every single threat that comes my way now on the internet, and that includes Wikipedia - I'm not rich, but, frankly, I just can't do it alone anymore and the system isn't solving anything. >From Twitter to Wikipedia, a day doesnt' go by when myself or a woman I know isn't threatened on the internet. I'm just so sick of it. :( > I'm also really pissed off in general about the last 24 hours in america. So whatever. +1 :( -Jeremy
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